Manchester Terrier

Manchester Terrier​ - Terrier Group

Quick Facts

Origin: England

Height: Standard: 15″-16″, Toy: 10″-12″

Weight: Standard: 12-22 lbs, Toy: 7-12 lbs

Color: Black & tan with possible tan markings

Lifespan: 15-17 years

Temperament: Smart, active, discerning

 

Overview

Manchester Terriers were bred as ratters during the industrial revolution in England. This job required an independent and tenacious attitude. Today these little pups who maintained their excellent hearing, make small but mighty watchdogs. They will always be wary of strangers until they are certain there is no threat. They should not be paired with smaller animals, as their natural instincts may have these pets meet an untimely end. They are good with cats and other dogs.

They make good family pets, but their small size does not suit them to rambunctious children, who may accidently injure them in rough play. The Manchester can thrive when given proper training. Always maintain the pack order in your house or your pup will try to take over as the Alpha.

Celebrity Owners

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Fun Facts

  1. Known as “The Gentleman with a Hunter’s Heart”

Health

The most health concern to be aware of is juvenile cardiomyopathy. There is currently no screening for this concern. If you pup requires surgery, note that The Manchester is more susceptible to anesthesia.

Other health concerns include:

  • Patellar luxation: Luxating simply means out of place or dislocated. Patella is a kneecap. A Luxating patella is a kneecap that chronically moves out of its normal position.
  • Primary lens luxation: Here, the tiny fibers that hold the lens suspended in the eye begin to degrade. Eventually, the lens can fall out of place.
  • Hydrocephalus: This condition occurs when there is a cerebrospinal fluid buildup in the brain. This places potentially grave pressure on the brain. This condition is typically congenital, meaning they were born with it.
  • Hip dysplasia: This condition is when the socket joint in the hip isn’t large enough, or more often too shallow, for the femoral head.
  • Von Willebrand’s disease: Caused by a deficiency of von Willebrand factor, a protein in the blood that helps platelets, this disease is a bleeding disorder.
  • Hypothyroidism: The thyroid gland, sitting at the top of the windpipe in the back of the neck, is controlled by the pituitary gland at the base of the brand. Hypothyroidism would cause the metabolism to slow down.
  • Legg-Calve-Perthes disease: This disease occurs at the head of the femur (the ball and socket joint in your dog’s hips. Here, the femur degenerates which can cause the hip to collapse and can cause arthritis.

While you always hope your pet will live a long and healthy life, it is always a good idea to invest in pet health insurance.

Keeping your dog’s mouth clean and problem free goes a long way to your pup’s overall health. Dental hygiene can be the cause or can be the byproduct of other serious health issues.

Visual inspections can be performed to keep track of the signs of potentially waning oral health. These signs can be anything from bad breath to abnormal chewing to loss of appetite.

Keeping ahead of these warning signs can pay dividends. A preventative approach can delay and stop many of the common dental problems from arising.

Oral health can be tackled in five basic steps:

  1. Brushing your dog’s teeth to prevent an undesirable buildup of plaque
  2. Feed your dog a diet where the high quality dog food has dental benefits
  3. Regularly give your dog dental toys and treats
  4. Use mouthwash, to help where brushing misses
  5. At the sign of any abnormalities, consult a vet. You can even do it virtually, from the convenience of your home.

Dogs are just like humans in that they can experience anxiety. The degree to which they are susceptible to anxiety and how they deal with anxiety is breed specific. Left unchecked, initial signs of anxiety could give way to an anxiety disorder. The symptoms of anxiety disorders can lead to a myriad of behavior issues.

Knowing the signs and symptoms will best equip you to keep ahead of it and to nip it in the bud at the earliest signs. There are options available to help with anxiety.

Are You Covered When Your Pup Gets Sick?

Grooming

The Manchester require quite little in the way of grooming. You can wipe your pup down with a damp towel or with a glove to pull away any dead hair. Bathe your pup occasionally when they get exceptionally dirty.

Keep your pup’s eyes and ears clean and clear of debris. Clip their nails regularly and brush their teeth several times a week.

Cost

$1,200 – $1,500

Exercise

Your Manchester will need at least an hour of exercise each day. When on walks always keep your pup on a leash. The terrier instinct to chase small prey is often stronger than their will to listen to your return commands.

Accordingly, make sure if you have a fenced in area that it is secure for a dog with a penchant for digging. The Manchester will happily play fetch for hours on end.

Nutrition

Your Manchester will eat around 1 cup of food per day. The exact requirements for your dog will vary with age and activity level. Be mindful that little dogs that receive lots of treats and or table scraps end up overweight.

A little dog that is overweight is significantly more likely to develop other health issues.

We’ve taken a look at some premium dog foods, high in nutrition here.

Are You Feeding Your Dog The Best Food?

Training

As with all dogs, early socialization with humans and other dogs is a necessity. Training should start early and be consistent. Always be firm but positive when training small dogs. You must maintain that you are the authority in your home, or your pup will assume he is supposed to rule.

Proper training is essential to ensuring the safety of your dog and those around you. Having your dog come when they should, and in general having them listen is something you want to address early in your pup’s life, as it will pay dividends down the line. There are many tried and true training programs to accomplish this training – faster and better than you might think!

Unless you’re living on a farm, or have the space, a yipping dog, or one that barks all day when you are gone could be an issue with the neighbors and/or landlord. Historically, dogs would bark to communicate with the rest of the pack when hunting and bark as a warning shot to predators eyeing up their flock. Barking is deep rooted in dogs and manifests itself in many ways and for a variety of reasons.

Just like any habit or instinct, there are effective ways you can train this issue away.

The Best Dog Vitamins and Supplements To Keep Your Pup Healthy. Period.

Supplements

A solid Glucosamine Supplement for hips and joints will go a long way to helping your furry friend.

Other helpful supplements include full-spectrum hemp oil or CBD oil. Fish oil skin and coat supplement.

Ensuring a comprehensive preventative vitamin and mineral plan is essential to keeping your dog healthy. Truth is, there are vitamins and minerals that your dog needs, but doesn’t produce naturally. While many of these vitamins and minerals can be found in your dog’s current diet and dog food, the question becomes, are there enough vitamins to ensure they aren’t deficient.

Poor nutrition can lead to some of the most common health issues, such as weak joints, compromised immunity, increased allergies, and low energy.

Vitamins play a vital role in your pet’s health and overall life expectancy. Here are some multivitamin and joint relief options.

As regulations around marijuana have eased, the emergence of CBD oils for humans and dogs have sprung up.

Just to begin to dispel the negative stigma, CBD extract comes from Hemp, marijuana’s cousin. Unlike its cousin, there are no psychoactive qualities in CBD oil. An emerging number of clinical and institutional studies have shown the wide variety of healing qualities in CBD, including pain management, and the containment of seizures and epileptic episodes.

Explore this remedy further to see all the health benefits that have transformed the lives of so many dogs to date.

Have You Tried CBD For You Dog's Health?

The Good

  • Alert watchdogs
  • Good with families

The "Ruff"

  • Not suited to be paired with small animals
  • Not good with small children
  • Can be bossy

Annual Vet Bills: $1,500+

Be Prepared for the unexpected.